- Rudder, the dog next door, has been barking for much of my 'quiet' time...insistent and constant in his demand to be heard. At first, I was feeling annoyed; "Why don't they let him in"? But then I sensed that You were trying to teach me something ... to help me learn to stay in peace in the midst of the barking. If I can't handle a barking dog, how will I learn to handle serious attempts to shake my peace? 

+ What I'm happy to see, My love, is that you are looking to Me to help you in the small challenges. It's the only way to learn.. start small and gain success. Sometimes the little things can be quite daunting if you let them. The key is to learn to settle into My Presence and roll with whatever is causing you stress. Peace is not something that comes automatically. Yes, I came to give you peace, but like the promises in the land of milk and honey, they most often have to be contended for. It is another mystery. Contending seems like striving, the opposite of peace. How does one reconcile these two seemingly disparate activities...resting and battling for what is already yours? Enter Rudder, a good little teacher! His barking is his declaration of peace (he's resting in the knowledge that he is loved and will be heard) and it is his way of contending. He's doing what he knows best to be heard. He knows that he belongs. He knows that the door will be opened. This is his way of knocking and he has no problem knocking over and over again until the door is opened. It's a simple analogy. I said it long ago to anyone who had ears to hear. "Seek and you will find. Knock and it shall be opened." Rudder illustrates the confidence of a loved part of the family. He fully expects that the response is on its way. He has no problem waiting. He's at peace doing what he knows best to get his way. 

You, beloved, are your Father's dear daughter. It gives Him joy to see you trying to relax and accept Rudder's incessant barking and to continue to rest in His Love and Presence. As you've heard Graham Cooke say so many times, rest can be a most powerful weapon against the wiles of the enemy, who is constantly trying to shake you up and stress you out. Ironic, isn't it, that the very cause of your annoyance, this dog, could be the very tool to teach you how to rest in the midst of it? Rudder's example of steadfast focus is the way. This peace is something that must be cultivated. You must be intentional and full of confidence that this peace is yours for the taking. It just needs practice, like lifting weights. You start with lighter weights and work your way up. The goal is that you will be able to be full of My peace during the most threatening storms. Like Me, you'll be able to sleep in the boat. This is your heritage. 

This morning was a good start. Rather than letting Rudder destroy your quiet time, you let him teach you an important lesson. Don't be afraid of the more advanced lessons. (Look at that! Already, the enemy is trying to destroy your peace by putting that idea in your head. ..that God's got scary things ahead!) Never let him distract you from trusting your loving Father, Who gives only good gifts. He is tender and the perfect Teacher. Trust always in His perfect Love. He is bringing you  (bark by bark) into His perfect peace!   

 - The fire station in the distance is sending the alert into the air. It only takes a minute to hear fire engine sirens racing down the street to the emergency... to lives that are facing sudden disaster ...needing rescue. The sound of the sirens has completely faded away now. Life goes on sleepily in this part of town, aware only of the steady rain. 

+ My Power is accessible to you every second of every day. I am always ready to rescue you from any potential disaster that envelops you. I have set up the framework not unlike the Fire Department, to respond to your every cry for help. There are angels on watch... guarding you... hiding you... protecting you ...coming to your rescue. You are My own and no matter where you are or what you're going through, I am accessible to you. This is why My constant injunction is "Fear Not"! While the world seems to be filled with raging fires of discord and hatred, let not your heart be troubled. When disaster looms everywhere you turn and dire predictions ride the wind like the screeching of fire engines, I say to you "Peace. Be Still!" Yes... there is warfare and chaos, but I am ever in the midst of it all. I tell you to step out, like Peter walking on the water, only don't do what he did and let the wind and waves take him down. Look only at Me and you will be kept high above the fury and the foam. My victory has been secured. I faced the intensity of all the hatred and rage fomented throughout all time by the prince of darkness (who is still trying to win the world to himself). When I said "It is finished", it was forever! When the sirens and fear fill the air... "stand in absolute stillness, silent before the One you love, waiting as long as it takes to be rescued".(Psalm 62:5) I will not fail you! I don't know how!  

     +I can use everything in your life to teach you My way of rest. As long as you keep yourself... your inner man... focused on Me...come what may...your joy will not/cannot be thwarted. Receive each moment, even the interruptions (especially the interruptions!) as opportunities to rest in My all-present, unfailing Love. Life can be an exciting game if, like the child I call you to become, you let not your heart be troubled about anything. A child playing in the yard is confident that her mother is sure to call her in for dinner when it's time, so she ignores the hunger she might be feeling, knowing that in good time, she will be fed (like the birds of the air... flitting through the sky...carefree, confident of their Father's care and provision). This mindset is so simple, yet easily lost in the urgent interruptions in a day. The way you maintain your inner child is to set your heart like flint on the unchanging goodness of your Abba. No matter what happens throughout the day, like the house build on the rock, your spirit will not only withstand the buffets of any storm that arises but rather, like an eagle, you will mount up and over the storms... riding the turmoil as it lifts you over and above the fray. Your confident expectation of your powerful Father's influence in every moment keeps your mind and your spirit strong in His strength. This rock-solid expectation of being taken care of by the One Who loves you best is what keeps you in that place of rest. This is becoming like a little child is so simple, yet unfortunately, my little flock often gets tangled in prickly brambles of theological complexity that tie them up in knots. No! No! I'm just looking for my little lambs to let Me carry them... to let Me hold them... who allow themselves the freedom to simply believe! The gift is so enormous, it seems too good to be true. Believe it, beloved! It IS true! God...your adoring, exquisite Father, Who is Love ...gave His One and Only Best Gift to be able to call you His own. So make Him happy and BE HIS!! Be His little carefree child, who trusts Him every minute of every day... who looks for signs of His Presence and Love every moment. Your expectant, upturned face is the joy that was before Me in the black pain I endured. I did it so My Father could be YOUR FATHER! 

This, My little one, is one of the best secrets of the kingdom. To live your life fully, confidently, purposely, all you need to do is to say, "Yes"! Live knowing that you are your Father's precious child. His Joy is to provide and care for you. He will never...never let you down... release His hold on you. He will never forsake you... never stop loving you perfectly. You are and always will be His little girl. Bask in the empowering revelation of what that means. Only a child can believe something that's too good to be true. Believe, My love. Believe and rest. Enjoy every minute of your blood-bought life. Look for and celebrate the little signs of His Love that permeate your days.   

       "Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it - because it does!" 

                                1Corinthians 14:1

+Beloved, your heart's desire to love is truly the high calling on your life. Nothing else matters more to the Father. It's Who He is and Who He constantly calls you to be. It's a wonderful thing that you are open to having your heart and mind transformed so that you can live in the fullness of the covenant. The way you do this is to believe that God - your adoring Abba - is stronger than the petty criticisms and judgments that flow into your mind unbidden. Think for a moment where these thoughts originate? The accuser loves to accuse! I came to reconcile... to alter people's preconceived notions. Think of how many times I chose the ones who were on the outside... the unaccepted, the unacceptable, and washed them clean with My words of acceptance and love. I did this with the clear intention of addressing the judgment that lived unchecked in people's hearts. So, I chose the woman at the well, the lepers, the Samaritans, the prostitutes, the tax collector. They were given my love and attention. This took all the righteous people by surprise... actually offended many who considered themselves higher than/better than these to whom I showed favor.

I modeled the servant heart that the Father adores. I absorbed all judgment into Myself... took the hits, the slights, the condemnation. I saw those who were isolated and rejected and pulled them unto Myself. I often tried to jar the priests and self-righteous by declaring them blind. (Oh how that offended them!) I wanted them to see the higher law; how the Sabbath belonged to the Father and not to them. How strange that they refused to see the Father's law of love overriding the legalism that blinded them to Who the Father was! A cripple made whole was not as important as a law that would keep him bound. So many of the captives I came to free were those who knew Isaiah's words by heart. However, they wrapped the word around them as a barrier, to separate them from the unclean and the heathen. They were captives of their religious mindsets... blind to the freedom and exquisite love that is higher than tradition or the law. So, my seeker of truth, let Me show you the ways you are blind. Open your heart to the offensive acceptance I offer. The very ones the enemy tries to make you feel superior to...humble yourself before the Lord and ask that your blind eyes be opened to see as beloved children of the Father. At first, this new alertness requires diligence. So often the enemy makes these negative thoughts seem so right... so well-deserved. It's so easy to judge when you choose to listen to his voice. My voice is softer. You have to be deliberate... choose to lean in, so that you can hear and be open to the truth about all people. There's not ONE person on the face of the earth that I didn't die for... not one! And so - when you allow any critical or judgmental thoughts about anyone free rein, you join the ranks of the accuser. I know you don't want to do that! So, every and any time you sense a negative, critical thought in your mind, choose to cut it off at the pass with BLESSING! This is the way that will set you up for a life of freedom and joy. You will be so aware of the Father's enormous ability to love All, you will be unable to hear the enemy's attempts to make you judge. This is part of the "truly free" that is included in your rebirth. Your blind eyes are being opened. You are living more fully each day as a daughter... a love slave of the king. The wonder is that He removes the chains that have bound you and declares you His beloved bride. The mysteries of the kingdom cannot be comprehended except by the Spirit Who lives in you! This is the plan...the joy set before you. Start blessing and blessing and blessing. It is the way of life and complete liberty.    

 " Benjamin, God's beloved: God's permanent residence. Encircled by God all day long, within whom God is at home." Deuteronomy 33:12

- Lord, You say in Your Word that You will live in me... "make Your home in me." I want the above scripture to be the overriding, constant experience of my life.

+ "Home Sweet Home." "There's no place like home." These are common expressions that reflect the longing deep inside every person for home. This yearning is a mark of the Father's Love. Deep within us, He deposited this longing that can only be satisfied by Him. He IS Home, and everything about His Kingdom translates into Love ~ Security ~ Joy ~ Acceptance ~ Forgiveness ~ Light ~ Beauty and Freedom. His person glows with all these healing qualities. He IS Love and Security and Joy and all the rest, multiplied by infinity. This is why you can trust Him with everything you are! In Him, you are home... and just to make Home more accessible... He comes by the power of the Spirit to make His Home in you! This can only happen because the King of all the universe, the Father of all, is also the very definition of humility. The quality of this ever-giving Love can permeate everything about you as you turn your attention from your own cares and realize His Presence within you. Suddenly, that deep ache is replaced with a confident peace... an expectant hope in each day. You are home because He is Home in you! This is a mystery that cannot be explained. It just needs to be believed. Just as this gray morning silently, without your discerning it, melted into a sunny day, the Light within you... this bright Presence of everything you could ever hope for or desire... starts taking over your identity and becomes your very life! One minute, you felt lost in the darkness. Suddenly, you are basking in the Light of the Father of all Lights, Who never changes. You are Home because He is in you! So, you need never feel insecure or displaced again. No matter what kind of chaos (internal or external) is swirling around you, you are in the Center. The Kingdom of Heaven is within you. You have the Peace that passes understanding. You are inhabited forever by the Triune God. Nothing can ever separate you from this amazing circle of Love surrounding you with favor as with a shield. This is life to the full! Home Sweet Home! 

 

"The person who lives in right relationship with God does it by embracing what God arranges for her. Doing things for God is the opposite of entering into what God does for you!"           Galatians 3:11-12 ~The Message

- Lord, this scripture is so powerful! It inspires me to rest in You and to keep my eyes open for what You are doing, so I can enter into it. Teach me the secret of entering in. 

+ When you get a glimpse of Who your Father is and how much He loves you, it changes your entire orientation. When you try to "do" for God... your eyes are on yourself. When you used to take dance classes at Luigi's in New York, you focused all your might on what the teacher was doing and poured all your energy into 'entering into' that. How silly it would be for you to be off in a corner of the dance studio, watching yourself in the mirror, doing your own (limited) choreography! Everyone would be wondering what you were doing (and why you bothered to put yourself under the teacher if you were just going to do your own thing!) 

    This is a simplistic analogy, but it illuminates the meaning of Galatians 3:11-12. Part of what is implied in this scripture differs from the Luigi's illustration. At Luigi's, you had no relationship with the teacher. In fact, the teacher was often completely oblivious to what the class was doing... so caught up in his own image in the mirror... glorying in his own beauty (ah...who does that remind you of?). But Galatians points to a Father Who has plans that He's arranged specifically for you! He sees you! He has prepared works... choreographed a dance that ONLY you can do! How silly it would seem then, for you to come to Him and say, "Look at the dance I've got for you!" ignoring the possibility that He has a different, far more glorious dance planned that He's excited for you to "enter into". This is why rest is so critical! This is why the Word instructs you to "Be still and know that I am God." When you come into His Presence... seeking to hear His voice... longing to live the life He has orchestrated for you, you will be empowered to dance like never before... like ONLY you can dance! You are following His lead and it is all about green pastures and His Beauty and Love twirling you through green, green Hope. 

    Study this scripture. It is a recipe for freedom, rest, and fulfillment.